Add Functions to Scripts

Starting in R2016b, MATLAB® scripts, including live scripts, can contain code to define functions.
These functions are called local functions. Local functions are
useful if you want to reuse code within a script. By adding local functions, you can
avoid creating and managing separate function files. They are also useful for
experimenting with functions, which can be added, modified, and deleted easily as
needed.

Create a Script with Local Functions

To create a script or live script with local functions, go to the
Home tab and select New > Script or New > Live Script. Then, add code to the script. Add all local functions at end of the
file, after the script code. Include at least one line of script code before the
local functions. Each local function must begin with its own function definition
statement and end with the end keyword. The functions can appear
in any order.

For example, create a script called mystats.m.

edit mystats

In the file, include two local functions, mymean and
mymedian. The script mystats declares an
array, determines the length of the array, and then uses the local functions
mymean and mymedian to calculate the
average and median of the array.

When you add local functions to a live script, MATLAB automatically adds a section break before the first local function
definition and removes all section breaks after it. This is because live scripts do
not support individual sections within local functions.

Run Scripts with Local Functions

To run a script or live script that includes local functions, in the
Editor or Live Editor tab, click the Run button. You also can type the saved script name in the
Command Window.

To run an individual section, place the cursor inside the section and use the Run Section button (requires R2017b or later for
.m files). In .mlx files, you can run
sections only when they are before the local function definitions.

Restrictions for Local Functions and Variables

Local functions are only visible within the file where they are defined. They are
not visible to functions in other files, and cannot be called from the Command
Window.

Local functions in the current file have precedence over functions in other files.
That is, when you call a function within a script, MATLAB checks whether the function is a local function before looking for the
function in other locations. This allows you to create an alternate version of a
particular function while retaining the original in another file.

Scripts create and access variables in the base workspace. Local functions, like
all other functions, have their own workspaces that are separate from the base
workspace. Local functions cannot access variables in the workspace of other
functions or in the base workspace, unless you pass them as arguments.

Access Help for Local Functions

Although you cannot call a local function from the command line or from functions
in other files, you can access its help using the help command.
Specify the names of both the script and the local function, separating them with a
> character.

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